Births: preliminary data for 2011.

OBJECTIVES This report presents preliminary data for 2011 on births in the United States. U.S. data on births are shown by age, live-birth order, race, and Hispanic origin of mother. Data on marital status, cesarean delivery, preterm births, and low birthweight are also presented. METHODS Data in this report are based on approximately 100% of 2011 births. Records for the few states with less than 100% of records received are weighted to independent control counts of all births received in state vital statistics offices in 2011. Comparisons are made with final 2010 data. RESULTS The 2011 preliminary number of U.S. births was 3,953,593, 1% less (or 45,793 fewer) births than in 2010; the general fertility rate (63.2 per 1,000 women aged 15-44) declined to the lowest rate ever reported for the United States. The number of births declined for most race and Hispanic origin groups in 2011, whereas the rate declined only for Hispanic, non-Hispanic black, and American Indian or Alaska Native women. The birth rate for teenagers aged 15-19 fell 8% in 2011 (to 31.3 births per 1,000 teenagers aged 15-19), another record low, with rates declining for younger and older teenagers and for all race and Hispanic origin groups. The birth rates for women in their 20s declined as well, to a historic low for women aged 20-24 (85.3 births per 1,000). The birth rate for women in their early 30s was unchanged in 2011 but rose for women aged 35-39 and 40-44. The birth rate for women in their late 40s was unchanged in 2011. The first birth rate in 2011 (25.4 births per 1,000) was the lowest ever recorded for the United States. The birth rate, the number of births, and the percentage of births to unmarried women declined each for the third consecutive year. The birth rate was 46.1 births per 1,000 unmarried women aged 15-44 and the percentage of births to unmarried women was 40.7. The cesarean delivery rate was 32.8%, unchanged from 2010. The preterm birth rate fell for the fifth straight year in 2011 to 11.72; declines were reported for each of the largest race and Hispanic origin groups. The 2011 low birthweight rate was 8.10%, down slightly from 8.15% in 2010.